Blades advice

[happyskater1]

Looking to buy a pair used blades for my risport rf3 pro. My current boots has Phantom mounted on them, but they are not the right size for me so the blades can't be reused on my new boots.
Now too broke to buy new blades 

Saw this pair of used MK Professional but unable to tell if they're still in good condition. It has got a lot of horizontal scratches (from sharpening??) and some nicks/ blemishes that concern me a bit.

The seller is asking for £50. Do you think it is a good deal?

[transmissionoftheflame]

To be honest while they do look more scratched then I'd expect, from what I can see they have a decent amount of rocker left on them and the rocker looks like it is the right shape.  I'd say from the amount of wear, £50 is a fair price, but ideally one would need to see more photos of both blades from various angles.  It may be worth asking who has sharpened them and whether they've always been done by the same person.

[happyskater1]

The seller said the blades have been used for 2 years and 9 months and have been sharpened by a figure skating coach for 4 times.
This picture shows some rust on the blades.

[happyskater1]

Here's a closer look at the blades

[transmissionoftheflame]

Four sharpens in nearly 3 years is not many - but perhaps the person who had them didn't skate that often.  I used to get mine done every 20-25 hours of skating, which for me was every 6 weeks roughly.


In theory if they've been sharpened by a coach they ought to be OK.  I don't think the rust would be a big problem.


The scratches may have been the skater hitting one blade with the other while skating, which does happen.


Would be interested to see what others on here say.


Brand new I think they would be well over £100.

[black]

For perspective new these blades are currently listed at 140 + P&P;
https://iceboxskating.co.uk/products/mk-professional-figure-skating-blades


The rust is minor; don't worry.

The horizontal scratches are only the chrome plating, not too bothering; possibly caused by hard blade guards?

Also could of been made by an automatic blade sharpening machine? Normally skate blades are clamped in a jig during sharpening; it's just the bottom of the blade that makes contact with the wheel. Notice that the first pick has the chrome removed; after sharpening you remove the burr by hand with a flat stone, but this looks possibly done by machine.

The chips/nicks on the front of the blade and the mounting plate are interesting, though not concerning. With low edges I wore the edge of my boots down to the blade plate, but there was no wear on the metal. The person most have narrow feet and caught the blade with the other during a jump, or a crossfoot spin; note that it only appears on one side probably indicating the skater's rotational direction.

Blades are pretty tough; they have to be, so most of this is just cosmetic.

Four sharpens is nothing; plenty of life left - you'll note the bottom part of the blade, the part between where the chrome stops and the actual edge is; from memory this is the heat treated part; to make it harder. You can sharpen beyond this point, but the steel is softer.

Also don't forget about the screws; are they supplied, or do you have some already? Stainless or galvanized/zinc are best; avoid just steel screws. They might be slightly cheaper, but they will rust out bad.

[happyskater1]

Sorry about the poor quality pictures I posted earlier. Here's one with higher resolution.

I've not had blades that were scratched to this extend on the chrome. I don't know how they were sharpened but your suggestion that automatic blade sharpening machine could cause scratches  is interesting.

I agree the chips above the picks are probably caused by the skaters kicking the part during a jump or spin. I sometimes do that too.

What seems baffling to me is there're more scratches the outside of the right blade (the bottom one), particularly near the picks. I can't think of any moves that would allow a skater to scratch that part with another blade. And if they're caused by bad shapening, I would worry if they've got more problems than we can spot from the pictures. 

However, if the wear is only cosmetics and doesn't impact its functions, I wouldn't mind giving these a try!

Great point about the screws! I totally forgot about them. Unfortunately the seller does not provide them. I'll have to check if my local skate shops sells any.

[transmissionoftheflame]

Regarding the screws, it's possible that whoever you get to fit the blades might have or be able to supply screws.  My sharpener also supplies and fits blades and screws.

[black]

What seems baffling to me is there're more scratches the outside of the right blade (the bottom one), particularly near the picks. I can't think of any moves that would allow a skater to scratch that part with another blade.

Side-by-side skate clashes, à la Blades of Glory!?

As mentioned it could be caused by hard guards; imagine you're right-handed, you lace up and walk to the rink entrance. You hold the barrier with your left hand and lift your right foot behind you and pull the guard off with your right hand starting from the heel. Then you lift your left foot up in front and rest it on your right leg above the knee; this time you pull the guard from the toe end squeezing the guard against the blade as you do so.

Blades rarely break; this guy was just unlucky! (2:12)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nlp1L42JEhM

I did hear that the Revolution MK blade (with the carbon fibre mount/plate) had some issues when it went through prototyping.